I waited too long in this cold and had a heck of a time skinning him ( had hair all over the place) and while I haven't skinned many males this one was just odd and grossed me out. Has anyone seen one like this?
" Graphic " Strange tumor / growth found skinning a squirrel
- Thread starter Jshepherd70
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I waited too long in this cold and had a heck of a time skinning him ( had hair all over the place) and while I haven't skinned many males this one was just odd and grossed me out. Has anyone seen one like this?
Hopefully this doesn't offend anyone.
First off when in doubt on such things throw it out.
I've worked in the meat processing business for 20+years. I've butchered and cleaned thousands of animals.
Now for the the thing that might turn others. Noticing the size of one testicle compared to the other. I've seen this in pigs. Where farmers believed that they have cut the pig. Leaving part of the reproductive gland.
Simple answer the meat will have a really boar like flavor and probably an odor.
Now for curiosity, do you have grey squirrels in your area? They tend to slip up behind red squirrels and cut them. Might be a lucky survivor.
First off when in doubt on such things throw it out.
I've worked in the meat processing business for 20+years. I've butchered and cleaned thousands of animals.
Now for the the thing that might turn others. Noticing the size of one testicle compared to the other. I've seen this in pigs. Where farmers believed that they have cut the pig. Leaving part of the reproductive gland.
Simple answer the meat will have a really boar like flavor and probably an odor.
Now for curiosity, do you have grey squirrels in your area? They tend to slip up behind red squirrels and cut them. Might be a lucky survivor.
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I didn't mention that but yes, I threw it back into the woods. I clean, cook and feed these to my dog and if it's not good enough for me to eat then I won't feed it to him. It freaked me out. This is actually the 2nd out of around 25 squirrels to have this. I mostly get females though,
We do have gray squirrels as well.
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Around here, it’s the Red squirrels that cut our Fox squirrels. My first squirrel(s) I shot when I was a kid was a Red squirrel chewing on a Fox squirrel. Got them both in one shot. I still have the single barrel 20 that was passed down to my dad and brothers. I guess that’s one good thing about being the youngest. You end up with the guns.
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ahh got it. I do pull from the tail but being really cold here it was pretty stiff and I ended up with the tail ripping off so I had to resort to the old school method.
https://youtu.be/6f0Or3L-dfM
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I have found those on lots of squirrels and I just trim them off. I have been told that they are glands.
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I guess I have to chime in here. Me living in Alabama and squirrel hunting for 40 years...All males will have these “growths”, the size depends on the age of the squirrel in my experience. These are not abnormal growths..they are glands or muscles I just trim them out.
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/\ Good to know, that is what I did. Wasn't sure if I should eat it, so removed them before vacuum sealing and freezing it.
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my grandson shot a big bore grey the other day and it had that also. They are in rut right now and I believe it is just swollen glands. I just cut them off.
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Quad82,
Fox squirrels vs Red squirrels? In our part of the country they are the same beast. With grey's being smaller lighter color mean little things.
It seems in our discussion here regional dialect plays a part.
Hence my second part.
Cut, not nut. From the Nebraska/Kansas region this stands for a castrated male. It can refer to a male pig, bull/bovine or sheep. In some cases banded is also a term in reference to rubber bands used for castration.
Fox squirrels vs Red squirrels? In our part of the country they are the same beast. With grey's being smaller lighter color mean little things.
It seems in our discussion here regional dialect plays a part.
Hence my second part.
Cut, not nut. From the Nebraska/Kansas region this stands for a castrated male. It can refer to a male pig, bull/bovine or sheep. In some cases banded is also a term in reference to rubber bands used for castration.
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Yes , that is normal in mature squirrels, also the idea that squirrels de-nut the young ones to eliminate the competition is an old wives tail according to game biologists in Texas.
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Shot 2 fox squirrels last Tuesday.
1 male and the other female, both had these growths, each from different woods about 6 miles apart.
1 male and the other female, both had these growths, each from different woods about 6 miles apart.
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See those on just about every mature male squirrel here in MD. Always assumed they were some sort of scent glands. I just trim around them when removing the hind legs individually.
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